Understanding Your Drivers
Drivers are unconscious internal pressures that influence how we tackle problems and prioritise actions. There are 5 common drivers of human behaviour:
Be perfect
Be strong
Be fast
Please others
Try hard
All of these can be helpful and allow us to excel in certain circumstances, but when we automatically allow them to drive our behaviour and decision making they can bring unintended or unhelpful results.
Rank the statements in each section from 1 (least like you) to 5 (most like you). Do not give any statements the same score. Take note of your answers so you can add up your scores for each letter at the end (i.e. adding up your answers to A, then your answers for B, and so on).
Section 1 of 12
A. Endurance is a valuable asset
B. I like to see people trying their best to get things right
C. Considering all the effort I put into things I should get more done
D. I find myself doing too many things at the last minute
E. On balance I adapt more to other people’s wishes than they do to mine
Section 2 of 12
A. When someone gets emotional my reaction can be to dismiss it or perhaps criticise/tease them
B. Casualness and carelessness bother me
C. Keeping doing things interests me more than finishing them
D. When people are slow to make their point I want to interrupt or finish the sentence for them
E. I have a fair amount of imagination when it comes to guessing what people need
Section 3 of 12
A. It is rare for me to feel hurt
B. If something needs to be done properly then I’d rather do it myself
C. I don’t mind things being hard, I’ll find the energy for it
D. I prefer to use the minimum necessary time to get to a place
E. If someone doesn’t like me I either try hard to get them to like me or I walk away
Section 4 of 12
A. I show a calm face when my feelings are running high
B. I don’t make excuses for poor work
C. There’s something about coming to the end of a job that I don’t like
D. I get impatient with slow people
E. Normally I prefer to take people’s wishes into account before deciding something
Section 5 of 12
A. I don’t let people look after me much
B. I sometimes find it hard to stop myself correcting people
C. I put a lot of effort into things
D. Sometimes it is better to just do something and leave the discussion until later
E. I’m cautious about asking for favours
Section 6 of 12
A. I dislike people making a fuss about things
B. Things can always be improved on
C. I don’t believe in the ‘easy way’
D. Sometimes I talk too quickly
E. I’m uncomfortable when people are upset or displeased with me
Section 7 of 12
A. I usually manage to cope even when I feel I’ve had more than enough
B. I prefer doing things really well even if it takes longer
C. I tend to start things then gradually lose energy or interest
D. I want to get a whole lot of things finished, then I run out of time
E. I think I do a lot to be considerate towards others
Section 8 of 12
A. I’m not what you would call soft
B. I prefer to do things right the first time than have to re-do them
C. I sometimes repeat myself because I’m not sure I’ve been understood
D. My energy is often at its highest when I have lots of things to do
E. It’s quite hard to say no when someone really wants something
Section 9 of 12
A. I can put up with a great deal without anyone realising it
B. I like to use words correctly
C. I like exploring a variety of alternatives before getting started
D. It’s quite like me to be already thinking of the next thing before I have finished the first
E. When someone likes me I am more at ease
Section 10 of 12
A. Other people start whining or complaining before I do
B. I prefer to correct myself rather than have other people correct me
C. People who just want to finish something tend to irritate me
D. I prefer to just plunge into something rather than have to plan
E. If a person doesn’t know what I want I’d rather not have to ask directly
Section 11 of 12 - You’re nearly done!
A. When people get excited I stay very cool and rational
B. I can do something well and still be critical of myself
C. There are so many things to take into account it can be hard to get to the end of something
D. If I had 20% more time I could relax more
E. I often smile and nod when people talk to me
Section 12 of 12 - You’re nearly done!
A. I think duty and reason pay off better than emotion in the long run
B. I tend to see quickly how something could be improved on
C. Some people have a habit of over simplifying things
D. Sometimes the more there is to do, the more I get done
E. I have a good intuitive sense if someone likes me or not
Now it’s time to add up your answers to for all of the As, all of the Bs, all of the Cs, all of the Ds, and all of the Es. Enter your results in the form below!